13 fed on Thanksgiving Day, 23 on Saturday. That's the very local Reverend household news. Early reports indicate leftovers will last approximately 6.375 days. Now onto the world scene.....

My last post mentioned the release of new Condi Rice related 9-11 program activities.....and I introduced it by pointing out how embarassing or bad news is often released strategically on a Friday night or, in this case, a holiday, to minimize it's impact.

The 9-11 tragedy has been in the news recently because of the announcement by the Obama administration that the U.S. would try a handful of 9-11 conspirators in New York City. Hours of quivering-bunny style reporting has been the result of that announcement. As usual, many conservative politicians have been given ample media time to air their objections. When conservatives and Republicans are scared, or say that they are, and in need of diaper changing,....the media is right there documenting each and every wah-wah.

However, when important new news, news of substance and not of silliness, happens....that news is released late Friday night, or in the case for today's post, Thanksgiving Day.....

First, let me say that I have been very appreciative of the Beacon's editorials recently. I also appreciate it that I no longer have to look at the ridiculously ignorant "political" cartoons of Chip Bok.... they were embarassing.

Major Nidal Malik Hasan....the Ft. Hood mass shooter.....will, rightfully, be held accountable for his gruesome and insane actions in killing 13 and wounding 30. What Hasan did was inexcusable, and cannot be rationalized.

Tonight's the vote on whether to allow debate in the Senate on the health care reform bill. 60 votes are needed to begin debate....yes, BEGIN debate.

If you've been following this congressional soap opera develop.....in a glacially slow fashion.....you also know that it appears as if Senate Democrats will have the votes tonight to BEGIN debate. Joementum Lieberman (Lieberman Party-CT) will magnanimously (after consulting Yahweh directly) vote to allow debate to start,...so will, apparently, Ben Nelson (D-NE). Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Mary Landrieux (D-LA) are still playing coy, probably looking for the hand with the largest check amount on in....in order to decide.

Why would major "news" outfits, like ABC, CNN or FOX, invite Rudy Giuliani to come to their Sunday shows, yesterday, and answer questions about the Obama administration's decision to try five 9-11 conspirators in New York City?

What possible information, what opinions, could Giuliani hold in his freaky little head that might justify ABC, CNN and FOX's invite? Rudy holds no office, hasn't been mayor of New York for quite some time, and made a national embarassment out of himself with his "noun, verb and 9-11" presidential primary campaign in 2008....the campaign he strategized so brilliantly by running in only one state, Florida.

First it was Rev. Wright...then Bill Ayers....with all the accompanying non-biased, and Pulitzer-Prize-caliber reporting. Then came the "Hillary Clinton was cheated," narrative suggesting (wrongly) that she had more primary votes than Barak Obama. All this was followed by "Obama's only a celebrity like Paris." Then came the "how can Obama overcome his problem with white voters?" question.

Sarah Palin's entry brought with it the "palling around with terrorists", "Obama is a Marxist", "real Americans in real America", and "Obama is not sufficiently patriotic." All accusations that had to be deeply plumbed for there wingnut wisdom.

In the decade from 1994 through 2004, the amount of money spent on pet food, pet supplies, veterinary visits, medicines, live animals and services, more than doubled from $17 billion to $34.2 billion,....... In 2005 alone $36.3 billion was spent.

According to an August 6th 2007 issue of Business Week magazine, we spend 41 billion dollars on our pets annually.

I suppose the reason Tea Party-Party (now official !) members, FOX, and the usual wingnut suspects have become so energized over the Ft. Hood mass murder story is because they think this story is another way to smear, slander and weaken President Obama and bash those 'politically correct' liberals.....in order to patriotically strengthen the nation, I'm sure.

Back in August I wrote about the totally dishonest attempt by congressional representatives to discriminate against reproductive-age women by singling out the medical procedure of abortion as the only medical procedure banned from any "health exchange" insurance policies coming out of the Obama-led health care reform legislation.

Last night, the following House Democrats joined with GOP women's-rights bashers voting to forbid abortion coverage, and abortion coverage only, from all federally subsidized health insurance policies.....

Liberal ideas...truly liberal ideas.....are rarely ever considered by Congress. The reason is that liberal ideas, somehow, are never worthy enough to be called American....even though the strength and character of America was built primarily on liberal ideas.

Take, for example, the liberal idea on health care reform. The liberal idea on health care reform is single-payer government run health care. Single-payer is the most cost efficient and most fair way to deal with health care for all Americans. Because that is the case, it can never be considered. The liberal idea of single-payer was NEVER entertained by any health care reform congressional committees. When citizen attendees at congressional health reform committee meetings stood and requested single-payer representation.....they were arrested.

As it is now, the more extreme portion of the GOP has decided to go after any candidate who smells of moderation or practices the evil art of compromise.

The Palin, FreedomWorks-Dick Armey, crazed conservative media morons, and, of course, the Tea Partiers, themselves, decided that some goddamn nut, Doug Hoffman, should push the more moderate GOP candidate out of a reliable GOP New York district House seat.

It says something about a free nation when truth can only be told using comedy as a frame. Reminds me of how blacks were first introduced into television. While no major, mainstream, corporate-whore media members examined the 800 pound gorilla question in the room...."Is FOX a news organization?".....Jon Stewart quickly went to work answering that, apparently, taboo question....